In Singapore, how the HDB flat will be passed on depends on a couple of factors:
- Is the husband holding it with his wife in the form of joint tenancy or tenancy-in-common?
- Does the husband have a will or estate plan?
- Is the husband a Muslim?
If the HDB flat is held as a joint tenancy with the wife, the right of survivorship will apply. This means that the wife will take the husband’s share automatically. The right of survivorship supersedes a will.
If the HDB flat is owned by the husband and wife as tenants in common, his stake in the property will be distributed based on his will or the intestacy law (a set of distribution rules predetermined by the law) if he doesn’t have a will.
If the husband is a Muslim, estate distribution will follow a different set of inheritance rules called the Faraid.
Read more: What Happens To My Stuff When I Die? (Singapore Edition), All About Probate & Administration (Singapore Edition), Immortalize x PropertyGuru Articles, How Does Muslim Inheritance Work in Singapore?